System and method for a subscriber powered network element

ABSTRACT

A system for powering a network element of a fiber optic wide area network is disclosed. When communication data is transferred between a central office (CO) and a subscriber terminal using a network element to convert optical to electrical (O-E) and electrical to optical (E-O) signals between a fiber from the central office and twisted wire pair, coaxial cable or Ethernet cable transmission lines from the subscriber terminal, techniques related to local powering of a network element or drop site by the subscriber terminal or subscriber premise remote powering device are provided. Certain advantages and/or benefits are achieved using the present invention, such as freedom from any requirement for additional meter installations or meter connection charges and does not require a separate power network.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is filed under 37 C.F.R. §1.53(b)(2) as acontinuation-in-part claiming the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §120 of thepending patent application Ser. No. 11/764,228, “System and Method For ASubscriber-Powered Network Element”, which was filed by the sameinventors on Jul. 17, 2007 claiming the benefit under 37 C.F.R.§1.53(b)(2) of patent application Ser. No. 11/369,512 which was filed bythe same inventors on Mar. 1, 2006, now abandoned, claiming the benefitunder 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.60/657,511 filed on Mar. 1, 2005, now expired, and entirely incorporatedherein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to fiber optic communication networks,more specifically to the electrical powering architecture of opticalaccess networks, wide area networks, broadband communications ortelecommunication systems.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With increasing customer or subscriber demand for transmitting andreceiving increasingly greater amounts of information, telecommunicationand broadband cable communication companies are being pushed to upgradetheir wide area network (WAN) or broadband access communication networkinfrastructures. In order to supply more information in the form ofvideo, audio and telephony at higher rates, higher bandwidthcommunication network upgrades or new deployments are required. Twistedwire pair cable, such as used in plain old telephone services, do notsupport high bandwidths over a great distance; and while coaxial cables,such as used in cable television services, do a better job, it too hasreach and bandwidth limitations. Optical fiber can provide virtuallyunlimited bandwidth thus enabling broadband and multimedia services.

Modern telephone wide area network access infrastructures, such as fiberin the loop networks (FITL), utilize a combination of fiber optics andtwisted wire pair to send and receive data communications to and from asubscriber. While modern cable wide area network access infrastructures,such as Hybrid Fiber Coaxial networks (HFC), utilize a combination offiber optic and coaxial cable to send and receive data communications toand from a subscriber. Generally, subscribers are served by twisted wirepair in the last mile or so of the telecommunication networks or bycoaxial cable within the last two to three miles or so of cablenetworks. In order to achieve greater bandwidth rates at a subscriberlocation, the fiber optic network must be brought closer to thesubscriber so that the copper drop (e.g., twisted wire pair or coaxialcable) is of a sufficiently short distance and will be capable ofsupporting increased data transfer rates.

One major problem with bringing fiber cable within a short distance of asubscriber location is the added burden of maintaining the multitude ofoptical to copper drop sites. These drop sites are network elements thatare called optical network units (ONUs) or optical network terminals(ONTs) in telecommunication networks and optical node (or simply a node)in hybrid fiber cable networks and generally serve to convertinformation between the optical domain of a fiber and electrical domainof a twisted pair or coaxial cable.

A significant part of the provisioning and maintenance of these dropsites by Service Providers or their affiliates (e.g., broadband accessservice provider, application service providers, internet serviceproviders, managed service providers, master managed service providers,managed internet service providers, telecommunication service providers,campus service providers, cable service providers) is supplying theelectrical power required. Optical fiber itself is not capable ofcarrying the electricity to power these drop sites. This creates achallenge in planning, distributing and deployment of electricity topower the drop site energy needs. Furthermore, reserve power must alsobe provided if the main power supply to the drop site fails and withenough reserve powering capacity capable of meeting performance andreliability requirements of the network for several hours or even days.This is often the case with Lifeline telephony service, which isrequired in plain old telephone service networks. Lifeline telephonemeans that the subscriber telephones must remain energized andoperational during an AC supply power interruption or outage at thesubscriber premise.

The drop sites are typically centrally powered from a Service Provideror affiliates' distributed copper facility or a power node located neara cluster of drop sites, or locally powered from a nearby commercial orutility electrical power source, or with solar photovoltaic energy.

In the case of centralized power, power is typically provided over newor existing copper facilities from a central office (CO). Power can alsobe provided on separate twisted wire pair or coaxial cable that arebonded to the outside of a fiber cable bundle, woven within a fiberoptical cable bundle or deployed separately with the fiber duringinstallation of the fiber from the central office. However, centralizedpower is a strategy that requires a separate power network to bedeployed that is separate from the information network. With increasingdistances between a central office or head end to the remote drop sitesincreased voltages are required on the power network to feed the dropsite energy needs. Increased voltages raise craft safety issues.Alternatively, the power network may be augmented with power nodeslocated near a cluster of drop sites, however additional metallicenclosures increase susceptibility to electrical surges caused bylightning and power-line induction. Furthermore, there is the 24-hour aday cost of supplying electricity to the power network, as well asregular maintenance and support of the power network itself includingregular replacement of batteries for Lifeline services, which aregenerally located at the CO or head end.

In the case of locally powered drop sites, power is derived near a dropsite and reserve power is provided with batteries at the drop site. Theprimary energy source for this architecture is commercial AC powertapped directly from a power utility's facility. The power supply isplaced in a small environmentally hardened enclosure that could beco-located with a drop site; however, the batteries are generally in thesame enclosure as the drop site. This results in a large number ofbattery sites and power access points. Generally the cost of this typeof system is high primarily due to the cost of connecting drop sites toa commercial power source. Regional power utility companies may insiston metered connections to their power grid, incurring a one-time acmeter installation and connection charge to be levied. Additionally aminimum monthly meter charge may be levied regardless of usage. Thisposes a major problem when the monthly energy consumption of a drop siteis significantly lower than the minimum charge.

In the case of electrically powering the communication networkinfrastructure locally with solar power, this strategy minimizes some ofthe disadvantages of centralized and locally powering such asvulnerability to lightning and limited battery reserve, allowing fiberto be the sole distribution facility. Solar panels and large batteriesare co-located at drop sites, which power the drop sites continuouslywithout any connection to any power grid. However, its use is limited toareas with direct access to sunlight as the output of solar panelsdecreases with a reduction in incident solar energy. Therefore, thisstrategy cannot be used everywhere. In addition, solar power requiresbatteries of large capacity (Wh) to be installed.

As such, a need exists for powering a fiber optic communication networkelement that brings optical access fiber within a short distance of asubscriber premise or customer location. The electrical poweringstrategy or architecture of the fiber optic wide area network must becapable of supporting and operating the multitude of drop sites ornetwork elements in a cost effective and maintainable manner.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, techniques related to local poweringof a network element or drop site of a wide area access network by asubscriber terminal, adaptor, router, server, gateway, or customerpremise equipment (CPE) which combines an electrical power signal orelectricity, which may be derived from subscriber mains power (e.g., ACpower), with the electrical data communications as a combined electricalWAN signal over the same communication medium connecting the networkelement or drop site and the subscriber terminal, adaptor, router,server, gateway or CPE are provided. Certain advantages and/or benefitsmay be achieved using embodiments of the present invention. For example,the embodiments of the present invention have the advantage of beingfree of any requirement for additional meter installations or meterconnection charges. Additionally, embodiments of the present inventionhave the advantage of reducing labor installation time and costs andenabling subscriber self installation. Furthermore, embodiments of thepresent invention do not create a separate power network. Theinformation network and the power network are the same network in thatthey share the same transmission line (e.g., twisted copper wire pair ortwisted wire pair, coaxial cable or Ethernet cable), thus thecommunication network can be powered in a cost effective andmaintainable manner.

In general, in one aspect, an embodiment of the invention includes asystem for powering a network element of a fiber optic wide areanetwork, such as a fiber in the loop network, which transmitscommunication data between a central office (CO) and subscriber terminalor customer premise equipment. The network element, such as a drop site,having an at least one optical port and at least one electrical port,serves, among other functions, to convert optical-to-electrical (O-E)and electrical-to-optical (E-O) signals carrying information between afiber from the central office and twisted wire pair to the subscriberterminal. The subscriber terminal or a remote user device furtherincludes a DC power source, a communication device such as a high-speedclient modem, and an electrical coupling device such as a SubscriberLine Interface Circuit (SLIC) device that includes means for couplingthe communications of the client modem and the DC power output of the DCpower source on to the same physical communication medium. The networkelement further includes a communication device such as a high-speed COmodem, a DC-to-DC power converter, and an electrical coupling devicesuch as a Data Access Arrangement (DAA) device that includes means forcoupling the electrical communications of the CO modem and deliver DCpower from the subscriber terminal to the network element's DC-to-DCpower supply converter. A pair of twisted wires that is in electricalcommunication between the subscriber terminal and the network elementserves as a medium for DC power transfer to the network element and formodem communications. In this way, the network element is powered by thesubscriber premise over the twisted wire pair cable and the modems arein communication over the same twisted wire pair cable.

Aspects of an embodiment of the invention may include one or more of thefollowing features. The fiber optic wide area network is a fiber in theloop network such as a Fiber to the Curb (FTTC) network, a Fiber to thePremise (FTTP) network, a Fiber to the Node (FTTN) network, a Fiber tothe Basement (FTTB) network, a Fiber to the Cell Tower network or somecombination thereof. Furthermore, the Fiber in the loop network may be apoint-to-point network or a point-to-multipoint network, such as aPassive Optical Network (PON). For example, the Fiber in the loopnetwork may be a point-to-point Fiber to the Curb network (FTTC-P2P) ora passive optical Fiber to the Curb network (FTTC-PON) implementation.The communication devices or modems, according to an embodiment of theinvention, may be Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL) type of modems such asAsymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) modems, Very-high-bit-rateDigital Subscriber line (VDSL) modems, or Very-high-bit-rate DigitalSubscriber Line 2 (VDSL2) modems. The communication devices or modemsmay also be Power Line, also called Power Line Communication or PowerLine Carrier (PLC), modems. Additionally the communication devices ormodems may be ITU-T G.hn modems. The electrical coupling devices such asthe SLIC and DAA devices may comprise coupling capacitors, couplingtransformers, blocking inductors, or perform inductive coupling.Furthermore, the SLIC and DAA devices may include elements for low passfiltering, bandpass filtering, and/or high pass filtering. The SLICdevice will limit the current of the transmitted DC power tonon-hazardous levels for the potential of unprotected human contact. Thepair of twisted wires is a twisted wire pair wire such as 22, 24 or 26gauge twisted wire pair, but may also be a single pair from a category 3cable, or a single pair from a category 5 cable. The network elementthat is powered by the subscriber maybe an optical network unit (ONU) oran optical network terminal (ONT). The subscriber terminal, customerpremise equipment or remote user device may further include one or moreof the following features for remote user use: an Ethernet local areanetwork (LAN), a WiFi network, a Voice over IP (VoIP) service, an IPTVservice, interactive broadband communications services or combinationthereof. The subscriber terminal, customer premise equipment or remoteuser device my also provide Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) or AnalogTelephone Adaptor (ATA) functions and include a battery backup in caseof subscriber mains power loss to provide lifeline support. The batterymay be user, customer or subscriber replaceable. The battery may also belocated at the network element. The DC power supply at the subscriber orcustomer premise may be a DC-to-DC power supply or an AC-to-DC powersupply and the electrical power may be derived from the subscriber mainspower by the DC-to-DC or AC-to-DC power supply.

In general, in another aspect, an embodiment of the invention includes asystem for powering a network element of a fiber optic wide areanetwork, such as a fiber to the premise (FTTP) network, which enablesbroadband communications between a CO and a subscriber or customer. Thenetwork element, such as an ONU or ONT, generally, at a high leveldescription, serves to convert information from the optical domain ofoptical fiber coming to the network element from a CO to electricalsignals on twisted wire pairs or that run between the network elementand a subscriber terminal or customer premise equipment. The ONU or ONTis located at the subscriber or customer premise, specifically at thepoint of demarcation or network interface device (NID). Alternatively,the ONT can be located within the subscriber or customer premise (i.e.on the subscriber's side of the NID) when allowed by local regulation.While not shown in the following embodiments of the present invention,alternative embodiments with the ONT inside the subscriber's premise arepossible and implied. The subscriber terminal or a remote user devicefurther includes an electrical coupling device such as a Power overEthernet (PoE) Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE) and a communication devicesuch as an Ethernet PHY device. The PSE is coupled to two or four pairsof wires, such as in a category 5 cable, to the ONU or ONT at the NID.The ONU or ONT further includes an electrical coupling device such as aPoE Powered Device (PD) that accepts power from the PSE and powers theONU or ONT. Additionally the ONU or ONT includes a second communicationdevice such as an Ethernet PHY device enabling Ethernet communicationbetween the subscriber terminal or remote user device and the ONU or ONTat the NID. In this way, the network element is powered by Power overEthernet from a subscriber or customer premise and capable ofcommunications with the subscriber terminal over the same pairs ofwires. The subscriber terminal, customer premise equipment or remoteuser device may further include one or more of the following featuresfor remote user use: an Ethernet local area network (LAN), a WiFinetwork, a Voice over IP (VoiP) service, an IPTV service or interactivebroadband communications services or combination thereof.

In general, in one aspect, an embodiment of the invention includes asystem for powering a first network element of a fiber optic wide areanetwork, such as a hybrid fiber coaxial network, which transmitscommunication data between a head-end and a subscriber terminal orcustomer premise equipment. The first network element, such as a dropsite, serves to convert optical to electrical (O-E) and electrical tooptical (E-O) signals between a fiber from the head-end and coaxialcable to the subscriber terminal. The subscriber terminal or a remoteuser device further includes a DC power source, a communication devicesuch as a high-speed client modem or client network device, and a firstelectrical coupling device that includes means for coupling thecommunications of the client modem or client network device to the DCpower output of the DC power source. The network element furtherincludes a communication device such as a high-speed head-end modem oraccess network controller device, a DC-to-DC power converter, and asecond electrical coupling device that includes means for couplingcommunications of the head-end modem or network access controller deviceand delivers DC power to the DC-to-DC power converter. A coaxial cablethat is coupled between the subscriber terminal and the network elementserves the medium for DC power transfer to the network element and fornetwork communications. In this way, the first network element ispowered by the subscriber terminal over the coaxial cable and the modemsor network devices are in communication over the same coaxial cable.

Aspects of an embodiment of the invention may include one or more of thefollowing features. The communication devices or modems, according to anembodiment of the invention, may be Data Over Cable Service InterfaceSpecification (DOCSIS) modems. The communication devices or modems maybe Power Line, also called Power Line Communication or Power LineCarrier (PLC), modems. The communication devices or network devices mayalso be HomePNA, Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) or ITU-T G.hncapable devices. The first and second electrical coupling devices maycomprise coupling capacitors, coupling transformers, isolationtransformers, center-tapped transformers, blocking inductors, commonmode chokes or perform inductive coupling. Furthermore, the first andsecond electrical coupling devices may include elements for low passfiltering, bandpass filtering, and/or high pass filtering. The firstelectrical coupling device will limit the current of the DC powertransferred to the network element to non-hazardous levels. The firstnetwork element that is powered by the subscriber terminal maybe anoptical node, network node or simply node. The subscriber terminal,customer premise equipment or remote user device may further include oneor more of the following features for remote user use: an Ethernet localarea network (LAN), a WiFi network, a Voice over IP (VoiP) service, oran IPTV service. The subscriber terminal, customer premise equipment orremote user device my also provide Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS)and include a battery backup in case of subscriber main power loss toprovide lifeline support. The battery may be user, customer orsubscriber replaceable at or near the subscriber terminal or CPE. Thebattery may also be located at the network element. The DC power supplyat the subscriber or customer premise may be a DC-to-DC power supply oran AC-to-DC power supply. A second network element, such as a tap, mayfurther contain a device that combines the power and communication fromone or more coaxial cables from other subscribers or customer premisesto the first network element or node. The first network element may becapable of being powered from the power received from a singlesubscriber or customer premise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 a is a block diagram illustration of a Fiber-to-the-Curb (FTTC)or Fiber-to-the-Node (FTTN) point-to-multipoint passive optical network(PON) with an ONU network element powered by a subscriber's customerpremise equipment (CPE) or subscriber terminal (ST) using a singletwisted wire pair, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 1 b is a block diagram illustration of a Fiber-to-the-Curb (FTTC)or Fiber-to-the-Node (FTTN) point-to-multipoint passive optical network(PON) with an ONU network element powered by a subscriber terminal orCPE using a single twisted wire pair, in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustration of a method of an embodiment of thepresent invention for powering a network element with twisted wire paircable.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTC or FTTN point-to-point(PtP) optical wide area network with an ONU network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a single twisted wire pair wire, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTC or FTTNpoint-to-multipoint PON with an ONU network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a single twisted wire pair while COprovides Lifeline powering across same twisted wire pair, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustration of a Fiber-to-the-Premise (FTTP)point-to-multipoint PON with an ONT network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a single twisted wire pair wire, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipoint PONwith an ONT network element powered by a subscriber's CPE or ST using asingle twisted wire pair with the CO providing Lifeline powering forPlain Old Telephone Service (POTS) using a second twisted wire pairwire, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 a is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipointPON with an ONT network element powered by a subscriber's CPE or STusing Power over Ethernet (PoE) over a single Ethernet cable, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 b is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipointPON with an ONT network element and a CPE/ST powered by another CPE/STusing Power over Ethernet (PoE) over a single Ethernet cable, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 c is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipointPON with an ONT network element powered a CPE/ST using Power overEthernet (PoE) over a single Ethernet cable, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustration of a method of an embodiment of thepresent invention for powering a network element utilizing Power overEthernet (PoE).

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-point opticalnetwork with an ONT network element powered by subscriber's CPE or STusing Power over Ethernet (PoE) over a single Ethernet cable, inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTC or FTTNpoint-to-multipoint PON with an ONU network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a coaxial cable, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustration of a method of an embodiment of thepresent invention for powering a network element utilizing power overcoaxial cable.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-point opticalnetwork with an ONT network element powered by subscriber's CPE or STusing power over coaxial cable, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 13 a is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipointPON with an ONT network element powered by a subscriber's CPE or STusing a coaxial cable, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 13 b is a block diagram illustration of a FTTP point-to-multipointPON with an ONT network element powered by a subscriber's CPE or STusing a coaxial cable, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 a is a block diagram illustration of a FTTC or FTTNpoint-to-multipoint PON with an ONU network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a coaxial cable, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 b is a block diagram illustration of a FTTC or FTTNpoint-to-multipoint PON with an ONU network element powered by asubscriber's CPE or ST using a coaxial cable, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 a is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining data communications andelectrical power.

FIG. 15 b is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining data communications and DCelectrical power in view of FIG. 1 a.

FIG. 15 c is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining data communications and ACelectrical power in view of FIG. 1 a.

FIG. 16 a is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining Ethernet communications and DCelectrical power.

FIG. 16 b is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining Ethernet communications and DCelectrical power in view of FIG. 7 a.

FIG. 17 a is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combining data communications and DCelectrical power.

FIG. 17 b is an illustration of an exemplary circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for combing data communications and DCelectrical power in view of FIG. 10.

FIG. 18 is an illustration of a chart depicting the frequency spectrumof various communication protocols.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIG. 1 a, wherein like reference numerals designateidentical or corresponding parts throughout several views andembodiments; and wherein cascading boxes below a part designates aplurality of such parts, an exemplary embodiment of an electrical powerarchitecture for a fiber optic wide area network is shown incorporatinga subscriber-powered network element, according to the presentinvention. A FTTC or FTTN network using a PON (e.g., B-PON ITU-T G.983,G-PON ITU-T G.984, XG-PON ITU-T G.987, E-PON IEEE 802.3ah, 10G-EPON IEEE802.3av, WDM-PON, or RFoG SCTE IPS910) connects a central office (CO)100 at the head end of a passive optical distribution fabric (ODF) 102to a subscriber premise 104. The subscriber premise 104 may be aresidential home, a multi-dwelling unit (MDU), a commercial building, ora cell tower. The passive ODF 102 is comprised of a plurality of passiveoptical splitters 106 and connectors (not shown). An Optical LineTerminal (OLT) 108, which is generally located at the CO 100 but may belocated in a remote or outside plant (OSP) cabinet, acts as a centraltransmission point and an overall controlling device for the network.The OLT 108 is in communication through the ODF 102 with a plurality ofOptical Network Units (ONUs) 110 located in neighborhood terminals (alsocalled pedestals) in FTTC networks 112 or in cabinets in FTTN networks114.

The OLT 108 transmits and receives data to and from the ONUs 110 in theform of modulated optical light signals of known wavelength through theODF 102. The transmission mode of the data sent over the ODF 102 may becontinuous, burst or both burst and continuous modes. The transmissionsmay be made in accordance with a time-division multiplexing (TDM) schemeor similar protocol. Frequently bi-directional wavelength-divisionmultiplexing (WDM) is used and although the FTTC/FTTN networkillustrated in FIG. 1 a includes an OLT 108 in communication with aplurality of ONUs using a plurality of fibers, other implementations ofsuch networks may only use ONTs or some combination of ONUs 110 and ONTs110. In some implementations, the ONUs and ONTs are generally similar.In other implementations, the ONUs and ONTs may differ in one or moreaspects. As previously mentioned, the ONUs and ONTs are drop sitenetwork elements that generally, at a high level description, serve toconvert information between the optical domain of a fiber and electricaldomain of a twisted wire pair wire or possibly coaxial cable.

An ONT is a single integrated electronics unit that terminates the PONand presents native service interfaces to the user or subscriber. An ONUis an electronics unit that terminates the PON and may present one ormore converged interfaces, such as xDSL or Ethernet, toward thesubscriber. An ONU typically requires a separate subscriber unit toprovide native user services such as telephony, Ethernet data, or video.In practice, the difference between an ONT and ONU is frequentlyignored, and either term is used generically to refer to both classes ofequipment. Although in the hybrid fiber coaxial network case, ONUs/ONTsare called nodes, optical nodes or even taps depending on where thefiber network ends and the coaxial cable network begins.

Referring again to FIG. 1 a, an exemplary embodiment of an ONU 110 iscomprised of the following functional blocks: a PON transceiver 116, aPON client Transmission Convergence Layer (TC-Layer) unit 118; a COmodem aggregation and adaptation layer unit 120; a plurality of DigitalSubscriber Line (xDSL, i.e. ADSL, VDSL, or VDSL2) CO modems 122; aplurality of Digital Access Arrangement (DAA) units 124; a plurality ofDC-to-DC power converters 126, and a power supply 128.

The client PON transceiver 116 comprises the necessary components toconvert optical-to-electrical (O/E) signal communications from the OLT108 as well as convert electrical-to-optical (E/O) signal communicationsand communicate them to the OLT 108. The PON transceiver 116 may beplugged into or comprise an optical port or socket, the optical portserving as a site for coupling to a fiber and for performing the O/E andE/O conversions. Some embodiments of network elements may be madewithout optical transceivers, however having an optical port for laterinstallation of an optical transceiver. In embodiments of networkelements made with an optical transceiver, the optical port and theoptical transceiver are essentially the same. Some form factors for PONtransceiver 116 include, but not limited to, SFF, SFP, SFP+, and XFP.The PON transceiver 116 communicates electrically with the TC-Layer 118.The TC-Layer 118 comprises the functionality of: bundling and sendingdata into packets or frames; un-bundling and receiving data into packetsor frames; managing the transmission of packets or frames on the networkvia medium access and bandwidth allocation protocols; providingnecessary messaging and end point behavior, and checks, reports and maycorrect for detectable errors. The TC-Layer 118 communicates with boththe PON transceiver 116 and optionally an 1:N aggregation and CO modemadaptation layer 120.

The 1:N aggregation and CO modem adaptation layer 120 has severalfunctions. Modem communications over twisted wire pair transmissionlines have lower bandwidth rates than communications over fiber. Thus toefficiently use the higher bandwidth rates of the fiber, thecommunications from multiple modems may be pooled together. Modemcommunications from as many as one to some N number, for the purposes ofthis disclosure, may be aggregated together. In an exemplary embodiment,some 96 modems can be aggregated together. The 1:N aggregation and COmodem adaptation layer 120 communications electrically to an N number ofmodems. Each modem serving to enable communications to/from a uniquesubscriber premise 104 over a unique twisted wire pair 130.Additionally, in some embodiments, multiple modem communications may bebinded together to/from a unique subscriber premise to achieve datarates beyond the capability of a single modem, these communications mayalso be aggregated by the 1:N aggregation and CO modem adaption layer120.

Communication devices such as xDSL capable modems 122 are chosen as thepreferred modem types however it is envisioned that many types of modemscan be used for communications over twisted wire pair wire or evencoaxial cable transmission lines to a subscriber premise 104. The xDSLcapable modems of 122 are central office (CO) or head-end type modems.Each modem is in electrical communication with an electrical couplingdevice such as a DAA 124 and the DAA 124 is coupled to an electricalport or socket (e.g., RJ-11) which is then coupled to twisted wire pair130.

A DAA 124 is a mandatory interface that protects electronics connectedto a telecommunication network from local-loop disturbances and viceversa. A DAA in general can mean many things because a DAA must performvaried and complex functions, including but not limited to linetermination, isolation, hybrid functions, caller-ID and ring detection.A DAA must also provide a loop switch so that the DAA looks on- oroff-hook to the loop; detect the state of the line and the incomingringing signal, as well as include support of full-duplex operation. TheInternational Telecommunication Union Telecommunication StandardizationSector (ITU-T) series G specification for transmission systems andmedia, digital systems and networks contains many documents,recommendations and specifications regarding DAA, as well as subscriberline interface circuits (SLIC) 132, specifically ITU-T G.100-109specifications that are hereby included by reference.

For the purpose and needs of an embodiment of the present invention, theelectrical coupling device DAA 124 is a device that: meets localregulatory requirements which differ by country or region; provides ameasure of protection for both a network element, such as ONU 110, andthe local-loop such as twisted wire pair 130 transmission line; passesAC and/or DC based signal information to and from a modem, such as xDSLCO modem 122, as well as decouples or passes DC power (DC current and DCvoltage) to a DC-to-DC power converter 126 from a twisted wire pair 130transmission line. Additionally, the DAA 124 provides isolationprotection to the modem from potentially damaging high voltage (e.g.,from a lightning strike or malfunctioning equipment) on the twist pair130. The DAA 124 device may be of a design that is transformer-based,optically-based, capacitively coupled-based, silicon/integratedcircuit-based, or some combination thereof which offer virtues in size,cost, and performance.

As previously mentioned or indicated, the ONU 110 can provide broadbandservices to a plurality of subscriber premises 104 over twisted wirepair transmission lines. Located in each subscriber premise 104 is acustomer premise equipment (CPE) or subscriber terminal (ST) device 134which is connected to the twisted wire pair 130. The twisted wire pair130 passes through the demarcation point or network interfacedemarcation (NID) 136 to the CPE or ST 134.

The CPE/ST 134 device and uninterruptable power supply (UPS) 150 ispowered by a subscriber's residential or commercial power outlet whichare derived from subscriber mains power (not shown). The exemplaryCPE/ST 134 is comprised of the functional blocks: a DC power source 138;an xDSL client modem 140; an electrical coupling device such assubscriber line interface circuit (SLIC) 132; one or more Ethernet LANports 142 with appropriate media access (MAC) and PHYs for operationwith a subscriber's local area network (LAN); optionally one or moreInternet Protocol Television (IPTV) codec and driver 144; optionally oneor more Voice Over IP (VoIP) codec and driver 146 (including FXScircuitry), and optionally one or more IEEE 802.11x (WiFi) transceiver148.

The DC Power source 138 may be derived from or be part of a DC-to-DCpower supply or an AC-to-DC power supply. The DC Power source 138provides DC power (DC current and DC voltage), which may be derived fromsubscriber mains power (e.g., AC power), in one or more power supplyrails to the electrical coupling device SLIC 132.

Generally, SLICs provide the necessary signals, timing, and controlfunctions for the plain old telephone system (POTS) line. SLICs and DAAsperform complementary functions with some overlap. The requisitefunctions of these devices, although similar at first look, differenough that implementing the technologies requires different techniques.For example, SLICs act as line power drivers as they send ringingsignals down the line and supply line power on to the twisted wire pairtransmission line, generally from batteries, to the far end of the line.DAAs, on the other hand, act more like receivers and use the suppliedline or loop power.

For the purpose and needs of an embodiment of the present invention, theelectrical coupling device SLIC 132 is a device that: meets localregulatory requirements which differ by country or region; provides ameasure of protection for both a network element, such as ONU 110, andthe CPE/ST 104; passes AC and/or DC based information signal to and froma modem, such as xDSL client modem 140; accepts DC power (DC current andDC voltage) from a DC power source, such as 138, and acts as a linepower driver driving the accepted DC power and information signal as acombined electrical WAN signal through WAN port 129 and down a twistedwire pair, such as 130. The SLIC 132 device may be of a design that istransformer-based, optically-based, capacitively coupled-based,silicon/integrated circuit-based, or some combination thereof whichoffer virtues in size, cost, and performance.

The communication device such as xDSL client modem 140 is acomplementary modem to the xDSL CO modem 122 and as previously indicatedis in electrical signal communication with the SLIC 132. With broadbandcommunications established with the CO 100 and with the optional IPTV144, VoIP 146, and WiFi 148 components the CPE/ST 134 is enabled toprovide broadband internet access services, television subscription orpay-per-view services, VoIP services and wireless LAN services andcapabilities.

VoIP service can be used as the primary telephony line service to asubscriber. Primary line means the telephone service will be availableall the time, and may even be available during a significant powerfailure event. In the case where a subscriber suffers a power outage,then the CPE/ST 134 will require a battery or uninterruptible powersource 150 to meet lifeline service requirements, according to anembodiment of the invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 b, an alternative embodiment of FIG. 1 a is shownwith CPE/ST 135 comprising SLIC 133 and DC Power source 138. SLIC 133operates similar to SLIC 132, coupling DC power from DC power source 138onto twisted cooper wire pair 130 with electrical signal communicationsfrom xDSL client modem 140 via twisted wire pair 131 ontosubscriber-powered twisted wire pair 130. SLIC 133 also decoupleselectrical signal communications from xDSL CO modem 122 on twisted wirepair 130 onto twisted wire pair 131. CPE/ST 135 allows electrical modemsignal communications to be exchanged between network element's CO modem122 and CPE/ST 137 client modem 140 while coupling electrical power foruse by network element ONU 110 on to twisted wire pair 130. In the casewhere a subscriber suffers a power outage, then the CPE/ST 137 andCPE/ST 135 will require a battery or uninterruptible power source 150 tomeet lifeline service requirements, according to an embodiment of theinvention.

Referring to FIG. 2 in view of FIG. 1 a, a flow chart of a method of anembodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Powering a networkelement of a fiber optic wide area network, such as on ONU 110 in FIG. 1a, from a subscriber terminal 134 at a subscriber premise 104 entailsproviding or supplying a DC power (e.g., from DC power source 138) ontoa twisted wire pair 130 as described at block 200. At block 202,electrical data communications from a communication device or modem, asin a client modem 140, are coupled to the same twisted wire pair 130along with the DC power. At block 204, the DC power and electrical datacommunications are transmitted, driven or sent as a combined electricalWAN signal though WAN port 129 across the twisted wire pair 130 from thesubscriber terminal 134 to the network element, such as ONU 110. Atblock 206, the driven DC power and electrical data communications areaccepted or received at the network element over the same twisted wirepair 130. At block 208, the network element decouples the electricaldata communications from the DC power, or vice versa, with a DAA device124. At block 210, the network element provides the DC power to aDC-to-DC power converter 126 for conversion and for use by the networkelement in the network element's power supply 128. In the methoddescribed above, the power network and the information network become,and are, the same network. The DC power that is provided or supplied atthe subscriber premise 104 for feeding the power need of the networkelement is assumed to be of sufficient DC current and DC voltagerequired for delivery to the network element. In many embodiments of theinvention, this required DC current and DC voltage will be of a highlevel (e.g., −48 volts, −24 volts) that necessitates the use of a DCconverter by the network element to convert the delivered DC power to ausable level (e.g., 5 volts, 3.3 volts) for use by the network element'scomponent subsystems as distributed by the power supply 128 (e.g., 3.3volts, 1.8 volts, or 0.9 volts).

In alternate embodiments of the invention, such as those providingprimary telephony line services without the use of a traditional POTSline, an uninterruptible power source or battery backup 150 device maybe required to continue to meet lifeline telephony regulatoryobligations.

It will be appreciated that according to the method of an embodiment ofthe invention as described above, that with an increasing number ofactive subscribers the power needs of the network element, such as ONU110, increases and so does the amount of supplied DC power with eachactive subscriber. The method provides a solution to match increasingpower demands with additional power supplied remotely from each activesubscriber in a progressive manner.

Referring to FIG. 3 in view of FIG. 1 a, a FTTC or FTTN network is shownwherein the implementation of the network is a point-to-point (PtP)fiber optic wide area network. The ODF 300 lacks passive splitters andillustrates the one-to-one direct connection between terminals 112 andcabinets 114 and the CO 100. Such PtP networks may be implemented by apoint-to-point gigabit or 10 gigabit Ethernet network (e.g. activeEthernet communication network) with complementary components such asoptical transceiver 302 and data link layer 304 in accordance withwhatever specific protocol is chosen for the network implementation(e.g., Ethernet). The optical transceiver 302 may be plugged into orcomprise an optical port or socket, the optical port serving as a sitefor coupling to a fiber and for performing the O/E and E/O conversions.Some embodiments of network elements may be made without opticaltransceivers, however having an optical port for later installation ofan optical transceiver. In embodiments of network elements made with anoptical transceiver, the optical port and the optical transceiver areessentially the same. Some form factors for optical transceiver 302include, but not limited to, SFF, SFP, SFP+, and XFP. Additionally someembodiments may use dual fibers for communications with the CO, head-endor OLT. FIG. 3 serves to show that the method of an embodiment of theinvention as previously described, as in FIG. 2, is a method apatheticand even naïve of the design choice or implementation of the fiber inthe loop network. The method works equally well for both PtP networksand PONs.

Referring to FIG. 4 in view of FIG. la, an alternative embodiment inaccordance with the present invention is illustrated wherein the primarytelephony line service 400 is served by legacy POTS from a CO or remoteDigital Loop Carrier (DLC) network 402. Traditionally, a CO or DLC 402is the sole power source for legacy POTS lines; however in thisembodiment the SLIC 132 provides the DC power to twisted wire pair 130b, 130 c, and 130 d transmission line. Twisted wire pair transmissionline 130 a is connected to the CO or DLC 402 to a network element, suchas ONU 404. ONU 404 additionally comprises a splitter 406 that combinesthe POTS service with the electrical CO modem 122 communicationstogether on the same twisted wire pair 130 b through an electrical portor socket (e.g., RJ-11). The splitter 406 places the POTS service at alower and more narrow frequency (termed narrowband NB) than the xDSLmodem communications which utilize higher frequencies to achieve greaterbandwidth for data communications (termed broadband BB). In thisembodiment a section of the twisted wire pair 130 b transmission linecarries POTS (NB) signal, xDSL modem electrical communications (BB) andthe DC power (both a DC current and a DC voltage). This section oftwisted wire pair 130 b lies between and connects the ONU 404, through asecond electrical port or socket (e.g., RJ-11) to the NID 136 of asubscriber premise 104. At the NID 136, another splitter 408 filters orseparates the POTS NB signal and the xDSL modem electricalcommunications BB providing the NB signal to connect the subscriber'sprimary telephone line service 400 and providing the BB signal to theSLIC 132.

It will be appreciated that in this embodiment of the invention anuninterruptable power supply (UPS) or battery backup source is notrequired. If a subscriber suffers a power outage, the CPE/ST 134 will bewithout power and thus broadband communications will be down as well.This is tolerable since the outage will cause powered equipment such asTVs and the subscriber's LAN to be down as well. The CPE/ST 134 will notbe able to provide DC power to the twisted wire pair. The CO or DLC 402routinely monitors conditions on the twisted wire pair transmission lineand sensing a loss of power on the line can provide the necessary DCpower to continue providing POTS services such as primary telephony lineservice 400.

Referring to FIG. 5 in view of FIG. 1 a, in which another alternativeembodiment in accordance with the present invention is illustratedwherein the fiber in the loop network is a FTTP or Fiber to the Home(FTTH) network and the subscriber-powered network element is an ONT 500at or near the NID 136. The ONT 500 does not support multiple subscriberpremises thus aggregation methods are not necessary in the TC-Layer andCO modem adaptation device 502 and only a single DAA 124, xDSL CO modem122 and DC-to-DC converter 126 are required to perform a method of anembodiment of the invention. The FTTP or FTTH network illustrated inFIG. 5 is a passive optical network (PON). If primary telephone serviceline is to be provided by the FTTP or FTTH network then a UPS/batterybackup source 150 for the CPE/ST 134 may be required for life-lineregulatory obligations.

Referring to FIG. 6 in view of FIG. 5, in which yet another alternativeembodiment in accordance with the present invention is illustratedwherein the FTTP or FTTH does not provide a primary telephone serviceline. In this embodiment the POTS services provided by a CO or DLC 402pass through the NID 136 with no splitting and on a separate twistedwire pair 600 from the twisted wire pair 130 which provides broadbandservices to the subscriber premise 104 and provides subscriber power tothe ONT 500 as previously described and indicated.

Referring to FIG. 7 a in view of FIG. 1 a, an alternative embodiment inaccordance with the present invention is illustrated wherein a FTTP orFTTH network is shown with a subscriber-powered ONT 700, which ispowered by Power over Ethernet (PoE). The FTTP or FTTH network shownbeing a passive optical network (PON) implementation. PoE is defined bythe IEEE 802.af specification (hereby included by reference) and definesa way to build Ethernet power-sourcing equipment and powered deviceterminals in local area networks (LANs). The specification involvesdelivering 48 volts of DC power over unshielded twisted-pair wiring inLANs. It works with existing LAN cable plant, including Category 3, 5,5e or 6; horizontal and patch cables; patch-panels; outlets; andconnecting hardware, without requiring modification.

A CPE/ST 702 comprising a communication device such as an Ethernet MACand PHY 704 device is in electrical communication with a first Powerover Ethernet (PoE) capable device 706. The PoE capable device 706internally comprises an electrical coupling device such as a PowerSourcing Equipment (PSE) device in accordance with the 802.3af standard.The PSE electrical coupling device couples electrical Ethernet signalsand DC power, which may be derived from subscriber mains power, providedby DC power source 138. The first PoE capable device 706 passeselectrical Ethernet signals as well as DC power through WAN port 129 asa combined electrical WAN signal over Ethernet cable 708 to anelectrical port or socket (e.g., RJ-45) at a second PoE capable device710 in the ONT 700. The ONT 700 being at or near the NID 136. The secondPoE capable device 710 comprises an electrical coupling device such as aPowered Device (PD) in accordance with the 802.3af standard. The secondPoE capable device 710 is capable of decoupling the electrical Ethernetsignals from the combined electrical WAN signal, which are then providedto a communication device such as the Ethernet PHY 712, and decouples DCpower which is then provided to the ONT 700 power supply 128. The secondPoE capable device 710 may contain a DC-to-DC converter to supply (notshown) the appropriate DC current and DC voltage needs of the ONT 700.The communication device Ethernet PHY 712 is in electrical communicationwith a TC-Layer and Ethernet MAC adaptation device 714 to complete thebroadband communication flow and to indicate the differences in ONT 700over previous ONT 500. The CPE/ST 702 is provided power duringsubscriber power outages by a UPS/battery backup 150 for lifelinepowering requirements.

Referring to FIG. 7 b, an alternative embodiment of FIG. 7 a is shownwith a CPE/ST 705 comprising PoE capable device(s) 706 and DC powersource 138. The CPE/ST 705 passes electrical Ethernet signals betweenCPE/ST 703 a and ONT 700 via Ethernet cables 707 and 708 respectively aswell as coupling DC power from the DC power source 138 onto 708 as acombined electrical WAN signal through WAN port 129. CPE/ST 705 isprovided power during subscriber power outages by the UPS/battery backup150 for lifeline powering requirements.

Referring to FIG. 7 c, an alternative embodiment of FIG. 7 b is shownwith a legacy CPE/ST 703 b that is not PoE capable. PoE capable device706 passes electrical Ethernet signals from Ethernet MAC and PHY 704 viaEthernet cable 709 as well as DC power provided by DC power source 138over Ethernet cable 708 as a combined electrical WAN signal through WANport 129 to the second PoE capable device 710 in ONT 700. The CPE/ST 703b and CPE/ST 705 are provided power during subscriber power outages bythe UPS/battery backup 150 for lifeline powering requirements.

Referring to FIG. 8 in view of FIG. 7 a, a flow chart of a method of anembodiment of the present invention utilizing PoE is illustrated.Powering a network element of a FTTP or FTTH network, such as ONT 700 inFIG. 7 a, from a subscriber terminal 702 or 705 at a subscriber premise104 entails providing or supplying a DC power, from DC power source 138to PSE 706, onto a twisted wire pairs or Ethernet cable 708 from thesubscriber terminal as indicated by block 800. At block 802, electricalEthernet communications or signals from the Ethernet MAC and PHY device704 are coupled to the same Ethernet cable 708 transmission line withthe DC power. At block 804, the DC power and electrical Ethernet signalsare transmitted, driven or sent as a combined electrical WAN signalthrough WAN port 129 across the Ethernet cable 708 transmission linesfrom the subscriber terminal 702 or 705 to the network element, such asONT 700. At block 806, the driven DC power and electrical Ethernetsignals are accepted or received at the network element over the sameEthernet cable 708. At block 808, the network element decouples theelectrical Ethernet signals from the DC power, or vice versa with thesecond PoE capable device 710. At block 810, the network elementperforms DC-to-DC power conversion for use by the network element.

Referring to FIG. 9 in view of FIG. 7 a, a FTTP or FTTH network is shownwherein the implementation of the network is a point-to-point (PtP)fiber optic wide area network. The ODF 300 lacks passive splitters andillustrates the one-to-one direct connection between terminals 112,cabinets 114, NIDs 136 and the CO 100. Such PtP networks may beimplemented by a point-to-point gigabit or 10 gigabit Ethernet network(e.g. active Ethernet communication network) with complementarycomponents such as optical transceiver 302 and data link layer 304 inaccordance with whatever specific protocol is chosen for the networkimplementation. The optical transceiver 302 may be plugged into orcomprise an optical port or socket, the optical port serving as a sitefor coupling to a fiber and for performing the O/E and E/O conversions.Some embodiments of network elements may be made without opticaltransceivers, however having an optical port for later installation ofan optical transceiver. In embodiments of network elements made with anoptical transceiver, the optical port and the optical transceiver areessentially the same. Some form factors for optical transceiver 302include, but not limited to, SFF, SFP, SFP+, and XFP. Additionally someembodiments may use dual fibers for communications with the CO, head-endor OLT. FIG. 9 serves to show that the PoE exemplary embodiment of theinvention as previously described, as in FIG. 8, is a method apatheticand even naïve of the design choice or implementation of the fiber inthe loop network. The method works equally well for both PtP networksand PONs.

Referring now to FIG. 10 in view of FIG. 1 a, an alternative embodimentin accordance with the present invention is illustrated wherein a FTTCor FTTN network is shown with a subscriber-powered ONU 1000, which is incommunication with a subscriber's terminal or CPE 1010 over a coaxialcable 1008 transmission line using communication devices such asMultimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) devices 1004/1012. The FTTC or FTTNnetwork shown being a passive optical network (PON) implementation. MoCAis an industry driven specification for delivering networking,high-speed data, digital video, and entertainment services throughexisting or new coaxial cables in homes.

A CPE/ST 1010 comprising a communication device such as MoCA networkclient 1012 device is in electrical communication with an electricalcoupling device such as first bias T device 1005. Bias T's are coaxialcomponents that are used whenever a source of DC power is connected to acoaxial cable. The bias T does not affect the AC or RF transmissionthrough the cable. The first bias T device 1005 couples MoCA electricalcommunication signals from MoCA Network Client 1012 with DC power fromDC power source 138 as a combined electrical WAN signal though WAN port129 and transmitted over coaxial cable 1008 through an electrical port(e.g., F-type or N-type connector) to another electrical coupling devicesuch as second bias T device 1006 in the network element ONU 1000, theONU 1000 being located away from the NID 136 and may serves a pluralityof subscribers. The second bias T device 1006 is capable of decouplingthe MoCA electrical communication signals, which is provided to a secondcommunication device such as the MoCA access network controller device1004, and decoupling DC power to the ONU 1000 DC-to-DC converter 126from the combined electrical WAN signal on coaxial cable 1008. TheDC-to-DC converter 126 supplying the appropriate DC current and DCvoltage regulation and to the power supply 128, which distributesvarious voltage power-supply rails (e.g., 3.3 volts, 1.8 volts, or 0.9volts) to ONU 1000's subsystem devices. The MoCA access networkcontroller device 1004 is in electrical communication with a 1:NAggregation with MoCA adaptation layer device 1002 that aggregates ormultiplexes the broadband communication and service flows between the COand subscribers. The CPE/ST 1010 is provided power during subscriberpower outages by a UPS/battery backup 150 for lifeline poweringrequirements. In this way, a bias T device serves to inject and extractDC power to supply the powering needs of the ONU 1000 while combiningMoCA signals on a same subscriber-powered coaxial cable 1008.

Referring to FIG. 11 in view of FIG. 10, a flow chart of a method of anembodiment of the present invention utilizing power over coax isillustrated. Powering a network element of a FTTC or FTTN network, suchas ONU 1000 in FIG. 10, from a subscriber terminal 1010 at a subscriberpremise 104 entails providing or supplying a DC power, from DC powersource 138 to bias T 1005, onto a coaxial cable 1008 from the subscriberterminal as indicated by block 1100. At block 1102, electrical MoCAcommunications or signals from the MoCA network client device 1012 arecoupled to the same coaxial cable 1008 with the DC power. At block 1104,the DC power and electrical MoCA signals are transmitted, driven or sentas a combined electrical WAN signal though WAN port 129 across thecoaxial cable 1008 from the subscriber terminal 1010 to the networkelement, such as ONU 1000. At block 1106, the driven DC power andelectrical MoCA signals are accepted or received at the network elementover the same coaxial cable 1008. At block 1108, the network elementdecouples the electrical MoCA signals from the DC power, or vice versawith the second bias T device 1006. At block 1110, the network elementperforms DC-to-DC power conversion on the supplied and decoupled DCpower for use by the network element.

Referring to FIG. 12 in view of FIG. 10, an alternative embodiment inaccordance with the present invention is illustrated wherein a FTTP orFTTH network is shown wherein the implementation of the network is apoint-to-point (PtP) fiber optic wide area network. The ODF 300 lackspassive splitters and illustrates the one-to-one direct connectionbetween terminals 112, cabinets 114, NIDs 136 and the CO 100. Such PtPnetworks may be implemented by a point-to-point gigabit or 10 gigabitEthernet network (e.g. active Ethernet communication network) withcomplementary components such as optical transceiver 302 and data linklayer 304 in accordance with whatever specific protocol is chosen forthe network implementation. The optical transceiver 302 may be pluggedinto or comprise an optical port or socket, the optical port serving asa site for coupling to a fiber and for performing the O/E and E/Oconversions. Some embodiments of network elements may be made withoutoptical transceivers, however having an optical port for laterinstallation of an optical transceiver. In embodiments of networkelements made with an optical transceiver, the optical port and theoptical transceiver are essentially the same. Some form factors foroptical transceiver 302 include, but not limited to, SFF, SFP, SFP+, andXFP. Additionally some embodiments may use dual fibers forcommunications with the CO, head-end or OLT. FIG. 12 serves to show thatthe power over coax exemplary embodiment of the invention as previouslydescribed, as in FIG. 10, is a method apathetic and even naïve of thedesign choice or implementation of the fiber in the loop network. Themethod works equally well for both PtP networks and PONs. FIG. 12 alsoserves to illustrate the power over coax method with an ONT 1200 as wellas to show compatibility with other MoCA capable CPE devices 1210 thatshare network communications with the MoCA access network controller1004 on the same coaxial cable 1008, though such compatibility can beused with ONUs as well. FIG. 12 also serves to illustrate the use of anoptical transceiver 302 and data link layer 304, in accordance withwhatever specific protocol is chosen for the network implementation thatdoes not need to perform 1:N aggregation or multiplexing of multipleMoCA connections. A DC block 1207 is used to isolate DC power whileallowing data signals to pass through unaffected to allow use of otherCPEs 1210 that do not provide DC power to the coaxial cable 1008. The DCblock 1207 may be internal to the CPE 1210 or external (not shown). TheCPE/ST 1010 is provided power during subscriber power outages by aUPS/battery backup 150 for lifeline powering requirements.

Referring to FIG. 13 a in view of FIG. 12, an alternative embodiment ofthe invention using a FTTP or FTTH network is shown wherein theimplementation of the wide area network is a PON 102. In this embodimenta CPE/ST 1302 comprising bias T 1005 and DC power source 138 is shown.The bias T 1005 of CPE/ST 1302 combines the MoCA or RF communicationsfrom coaxial cable 1308 onto coaxial cable 1008 transmission lines withDC power from the DC power source 138 as a combined electrical WANsignal though WAN port 129. The bias T device 1006 is capable ofdecoupling the MoCA or RF communication signals, which are then providedto the MoCA or RF access network controller device 1004, and decouplingDC power signal to the DC-to-DC converter 126 from coaxial cable 1008.The DC-to-DC converter 126 supplying the appropriate DC current and DCvoltage regulation to the power supply 128 to distribute power atdifferent voltage rails (e.g., 3.3 volts, 1.8 volts, or 0.9 volts)throughout all the ONT 1200 subsystem devices. This allowssimplification and use of legacy (i.e., non-subscriber powered) CPE/STdevices 1300/1310 while providing subscriber-power from CPE/ST 1302 tothe network element ONT 1200 over same coaxial cable 1008 used forcommunications.

Referring to FIG. 13 b in view of FIG. 13 a, an alternative embodimentof the invention using a FTTP or FTTH network is shown wherein theimplementation of the wide area network is a PON 102. In this embodimenta CPE/ST 1304 comprising bias T 1305 and DC power source 138 is shownand a UPS/battery backup source 150 for DC power source 138 is provided,which may be required for regulatory obligations. The bias T 1305 ofCPE/ST 1304 combines the MoCA or RF communications from subscriber sidecoaxial cables 1308 and from network element side coaxial cable 1008with DC power from the DC power source 138 and transmitted as a combinedelectrical signal on coaxial cables 1008 and 1308. CPE/ST 1301 has abias T 1306 that decouples MoCA or RF communications and DC power fromcoaxial cable 1308. Bias T 1306 providing DC power to the CPE/ST 1301'spower supply 1307 for distributing the appropriate voltage supply railsto all of CPE/ST 1301 electrical subsystems. The embodiment enables aCPE/ST, such as CPE/ST 1301, and a network element, such as ONT 1200, tobe powered by a second CPE/ST, such as CPE/ST 1304, within the customerpremise via the same coaxial cable transmission line used for networkcommunications, such as coaxial cable 1008 and 1308.

Referring to FIG. 14 a in view of FIG. 10, an alternative embodiment ofthe invention using a FTTC or FTTN network is shown wherein theimplementation of the wide area network is a PON 102. In this embodimentthe bias T 1005 and DC power source 138 are external to the CPE/ST 1300and are located at or near the NID 136. The bias T 1005 combines MoCA orRF communications from subscriber side coaxial cable 1308 onto networkelement side coaxial cable 1008 with the DC power from the DC powersource 138 as a combined electrical signal. This allows simplificationof CPE/ST devices 1300/1310 and simplification of subscriberinstallation. Generally, power is not available at the NID 136; howeverpower at the NID may be available in future Greenfield land (i.e.,undeveloped land as opposed to Brownfield land) installations and thisembodiment allows a network element, such as ONU 1000, to be poweredfrom the NID with power derived from subscriber mains power via the samecoaxial cable transmission line used for network communications, such ascoaxial cable 1008 and 1308.

Referring to FIG. 14 b in view of FIG. 14 a, an alternative embodimentof the invention using a FTTC or FTTN network is shown wherein theimplementation of the wide area network is a PON 102. In this embodimentthe bias T 1305, DC power source 138 and a UPS/battery backup source 150are external to the CPE/ST 1301 and are located at or near the NID 136.The bias T 1305 combines MoCA or RF communications from subscriber sidecoaxial cables 1308 and network element side coaxial cable 1008 with theDC power from the DC power source 138 as a combined electrical signal.This allows simplification of subscriber installation as well as accessfor maintenance of the UPS/battery backup source 150 providing powerduring electrical power blackout enabling lifeline services.Additionally, this embodiment enables a CPE/ST, such as CPE/ST 1301, anda network element, such as ONU 1000, to be powered from the NID withpower derived from subscriber mains power via the same coaxial cabletransmission line used for network communications, such as coaxial cable1008 and 1308.

In yet another alternative embodiment in accordance with the presentinvention, HomePNA is used as the communication method between anONU/ONT and a plurality of subscriber terminal/CPEs. HomePNA is anindustry standard for home networking solutions based on internationallyrecognized, open and interoperable standards that allow worldwidedistribution of triple-play services, such as IPTV, voice and Internetdata by leverage existing telephone wires (twisted wire pair) or coaxialcable transmission line. Thus, alternative embodiments of FIGS. 1-6 arepossible substituting xDSL devices with HomePNA capable devices forsubscriber powering network elements over twisted wire pairs as well asFIGS. 10-14 b with substitution of MoCA devices with HomePNA capabledevices for subscriber powering network elements over coaxial cable.

In yet another alternative embodiment in accordance with the presentinvention, ITU's G.hn is used as the communication method between anONU/ONT and a plurality of subscriber terminal/CPEs. G.hn is yet anotherindustry standard for home networking solutions based on internationallyrecognized, open and interoperable standards that allow worldwidedistribution of triple-play services, such as IPTV, voice and Internetdata by leverage existing telephone wires (twisted wire pair) or coaxialcable transmission line. Thus, alternative embodiments of FIGS. 1-6 arepossible substituting xDSL devices with G.hn capable devices forsubscriber powering network elements over twisted wire pair, and as wellas FIGS. 10-14 b with substitution of MoCA devices with G.hn capabledevices for subscriber powering network elements over coaxial cable. Aplurality of G.hn devices may be connected to the samesubscriber-powered twisted wire pair 130 or subscriber-powered coaxialcable 1008.

While DC power is the preferred method of delivering power from asubscriber's premise to a network element, AC power is also possible.Alternate embodiments of FIGS. 1-6 and FIGS. 10-14 b are possible withsubstitution of DC power with AC power. Alternate embodiments whereinelements such as: DC power source 138, 1307; DC-DC converter 126; DCblock 1207; UPS backup 150 and electrical coupling devices such as: SLIC132; DAA 124, 125; and bias T 1005, 1006, 1305, 1306 are appropriatelysubstituted or designed with AC power in mind are also possible.

While UPS/battery backup 150 in various embodiments of the presentinvention have been shown to be an external device. Alternateembodiments with the UPS/battery backup 150 internal to the CPE,communication and/or power-coupling device are possible (not shown).Alternate embodiments with the UPS/battery backup 150 may be combinedwith DC power source 138. It will be appreciated by those skilled in thearts, that during lifeline powering events that network elements such asONUs and ONTs and CPE/ST equipment may power down non-essential devicesto extend the time that lifeline services can be provided. Such poweringdown events may also include reducing the line rates of communications.

It will be appreciated that in the various embodiments of the presentinvention the network elements such as ONU or ONT may have circuitry tomeasure their power usage (not shown). Additionally, alternativeembodiments of the ONUs and ONTs with power measurement or meteringcircuitry may report their power usage back to the OLT or have theirpower meter or power measurement circuits reset, via the management orcontrol channel with the OLT. Service Providers may use this informationto reimburse subscribers for network element electricity usage and mayreimburse government entities for related taxation regulations. In yetanother alternative embodiment of the invention, an embodiment of a CPEor subscriber terminal may measure the amount of power supplied orinjected over the transmission line between the subscriber terminal andthe network element. The CPE or subscriber terminal may report the powersupplied to the Service Provider or an affiliate via TR-069 or similarprotocol.

It will be appreciated that while not shown, the subscriber terminal orCPE (e.g., CPE/ST shown in FIG. 1 a, 1 b, 3-7 c, 9, 10, 13 a-14 b) maybe a set-top box or may be incorporated into a television set (e.g.,HDTV display). For example, a set-top box or a television incorporatingan embodiment of the invention may power a service provider networkelement which provides services such as telephony, internet access,broadcast video, interactive video communications, and on-demand video.The set-top box, HDMI adaptor or high definition television (HDTV) mayutilize G.hn communications and may be a slave G.hn device served by theservice provider's network element serving as the master G.hn devicecontrolling one or more slave G.hn based set-top box, HDMI adaptor orHDTV device.

It will also be appreciated that embodiments of the invention have theadvantage of reducing installation labor time and cost. A significantportion of the time taken to connect subscribers to the ServiceProvider's network is the time and labor involved in provisioning powerto the network element (e.g., ONU, ONT) and obtaining government orregulatory permits when the location of the network element requiresdeployment of new power-main connections and power supplying equipment.Since embodiments of the invention use the communication medium used toprovide services (e.g., internet access, voice over internet protocol,broadcast TV, video conferencing) to also provide electricity to thenetwork element, additional time and labor to power the network elementis saved. Furthermore, self installation by subscribers is possibleassuming a Service Provider has established service access to thepremise (e.g., fiber connection or copper drop from a fiber). Selfinstallation by a subscriber may be made as simple as plugging powerinto a wall outlet from the Service Provider provided or Subscriberpurchased subscriber terminal (e.g., CPE, set top box, HDTV) andconnecting the subscriber terminal to a wall phone jack or coaxial cableoutlet. The reduction in installation labor time and cost may besignificantly more than the cost of the network element (e.g., ONT) andthe subscriber terminal. Additionally, Subscribers and Service Providersbenefit from the ease of installation associated with embodiments of theinvention due to the reuse of existing premise wiring which may precludethe deployment of new subscriber-premise overlay wiring that maycompromise, during installation, the integrity of the subscriber premisethermal insulation, natural gas lines, sewer lines and mains powerlines.

FIG. 15 a is an exemplary illustration of a circuit model of anelectrical coupling device for coupling data communications andelectrical power between a subscriber terminal and a network element.The circuit model uses hybrid transformers 1510 n, 1510 s to couplefour-wires onto two-wire transmission lines for full duplexcommunications, wherein transmit and receive communication signals eachcomprise a pair of conductors (e.g., four wires total) as does thetransmission line (i.e., two conductors) 1512 and communication signalspass through the transformers with minimal loss. The hybrid transformer15010 n, 1510 s blocks or cancels out transmit signals from appearing atthe receive port as well as blocks or cancels out receive signals fromappearing at the transmit port thus enabling full duplex communications.A balancing network 1514 is a circuit comprising of capacitance andresistance and sometimes inductance, forming a complex impedance networkas transmission lines are not purely resistive but rather a compleximpedance causing both the amplitude and phase to vary as signalfrequencies vary. The electrical power signal is also injected onto 1516and recovered 1518 from the transmission line 1512 via center-tappedtransformers and Z_(L) is representative of the load of the networkelement. Equivalent circuits may be produced that, as previouslymentioned, are transformer-based, optically-based, capacitivelycoupled-based, active silicon/integrated circuit-based (e.g.,transistors, op-amps), or some combination thereof. Additional circuitsor their equivalents for electrical protection and isolation (e.g.,isolation transformer, low frequency blocking capacitors, common modechoke), AC-to-DC conversion (e.g., bridge rectifier, reservoircapacitor), transmit and receive signal filtering (e.g., capacitive,inductive and resistive elements) and device detection circuits todetermine when a network element is attached or removed from thetransmission line (e.g., methods utilizing a low level current) may alsobe included in embodiments of the invention. Additionally, modulators ormixers, low noise amplifiers and additional signal filters may beincluded to adjust the frequency of communication signals as well as thevoltage and current characteristics over frequency of the electricalpower signal.

Referring now to FIG. 15 b in view of FIG. 15 a and FIG. 1 a, anexemplary illustration of a circuit model of an electrical couplingdevice for coupling data communications and DC electrical power betweenthe subscriber terminal 104 and the network element ONU 110 of FIG. 1 ais shown. xDSL client modem 140 is coupled to SLIC 132 comprising oftransmit signal filter 1520, receive signal filter 1522 and transmissionline hybrid coupling circuit 1510 s. A DC power source 138 is coupled toSLIC 132 and SLIC 132 also couples to twisted wire pair 130. xDSL CO orHead-end modem 122 is coupled to DAA 124 comprising of transmit signalfilter 1524, receive filter 1526 and transmission line hybrid couplingcircuit 1510 n. DAA 124 decouples electrical power signal carried ontwisted wire pair 130 and provides the decoupled electricity to DC-DCconverter 126. Referring now to FIG. 15 c, an embodiment similar to FIG.15 b, however, incorporating AC power is shown. AC power supply 1550,which may derive power from subscriber mains power, is coupled to SLIC134 and a bridge rectifier and reservoir capacitor 1555 to regulate andconvert AC power signal to a DC power signal which is then provided toDC-DC converter 126

Referring now to FIG. 16 a, an exemplary illustration of a circuit modelof an electrical coupling device for coupling Ethernet communicationsand DC electrical power is shown. An Ethernet power source equipmentdevice (PSE) 1610 and an Ethernet powered device (PD) 1612 utilizecenter-tapped transformers on two pairs of conductors 1614 (e.g., twotwisted wire pairs) to evenly transfer electricity from the PSE 1610 toPD 1612. An alternative embodiment may utilize the spare twisted wirepairs 1616 instead of twisted wire pairs 1614. Referring now to FIG. 16b, an exemplary illustration of a circuit model for coupling Ethernetcommunications and DC electrical power between a subscriber terminal 702and a network element (e.g., ONU) 700 in view of FIG. 16 a and FIG. 7 ais shown. Two pairs of conductors 708 are used to support fast Ethernetcommunications (i.e. 100 Mbit) and electrical power transfer between PSE706 and PD 710. Alternative embodiments may use four pairs of conductorsto support gigabit Ethernet on CAT 5 cable or fast Ethernet over CAT 3cable.

Referring now to FIG. 17 a, an exemplary illustration of a circuit modelof an electrical coupling device for coupling data communications and DCelectrical power is shown. An alternative method of combing datacommunications (e.g., DOCSIS, DOCSIS 2.0, DOCSIS 3.0, MoCA, MoCA 2.0 orG.hn modem) and electrical power on the same transmission medium,preferably coaxial cable, utilizes a bias T. A bias T for a coaxialcable 1708 comprises a feed inductor 1710, capable of blocking highfrequency signals (e.g., communication signals), and a blockingcapacitor 1712, capable of blocking low frequency signals (e.g., DCelectrical power, low frequency AC electrical power). Datacommunications signals are passed through IN 1714 and OUT 1716 portswith only the blocking capacitor in series. The inductor 1710 preventscommunications signals from passing through the Power 1718 port and thecapacitor 1712 prevents DC power from leaving through the IN 1714 port.The OUT 1716 port comprises both the communication signal from the IN1714 port and the DC power from the Power 1718 port. Additional circuitsor their equivalents may be incorporated to decrease signal losses(e.g., utilizing bias T designs from waveguides or microstrips,additional inductors and capacitors to form resonant frequency circuits,and shunt capacitors) and protect from application of reverse voltage(e.g., an internal blocking diode).

Referring now to FIG. 17 b, an exemplary illustration of a circuit modelof an electrical coupling device for coupling data communications and DCelectrical power between a subscriber terminal 1010 and a networkelement (e.g., optical node, ONU) 1000 in view of FIG. 17 a and FIG. 10is shown. A coaxial cable 1008 is used to support data communication andelectrical power transfer between bias T 1005 and bias T 1006. Blockingcapacitors allow data communications to flow between MoCA client 1012and MoCA controller 1004 while blocking electrical power. And blockinginductors allow electrical power flow between DC power source 138 andDC-DC converter 126 while blocking data communications. Additionalcircuitry to translate four-wires onto two-wire transmission lines forfull duplex communication is not shown but assumed to be part of thecommunication devices or modem subsystems (e.g., MoCA client 1012, MoCAcontroller 1004). It will be appreciated that bias T 1305 of FIG. 13 band FIG. 14 b does not comprise a blocking capacitor, such as 1712, toallow DC or AC power to flow onto coaxial cables 1008 and 1308.

As previously mentioned, device detection circuits to determine when anetwork element is attached or removed from the transmission line mayalso be included in embodiments of the invention. An exemplary detectioncircuit and process includes a resistive element or resistive load (e.g.10-35 kΩ resistor) at the network element placed between poweredconductors of the transmission line. In alternative embodiments theresistive load may vary as a function of phase or frequency of a voltageor current. A subscriber terminal senses the resistance between poweredconductors through an applied low level current before applyingadditional voltage and current. Additionally, a network element may varythe resistance seen by the subscriber terminal in a predetermined mannerand thereby indicate to the subscriber terminal the power requirementsof the network element. Furthermore, a subscriber terminal may monitorthe applied power at predetermined intervals (e.g., 50 ms) for powerdrops indicating that the network element has been disconnected or aproblem with the transmission line. Power drops lasting longer than asecond predetermined interval (e.g., 400 ms) will trigger the subscriberterminal to cease applying electrical power to the transmission line(s)until the subscriber terminal senses the proper resistive element oncemore.

It will be appreciated that some embodiments of subscriber terminals ornetwork elements may incorporate a large capacitor or small battery tosupport a Dying Gasp message. A Dying Gasp message or signal is sent bythe subscriber terminal or network element letting the head-end or CO(e.g., an OLT) know that it has lost power and is about to go offline.This saves a service provider time by alerting them to what has causethe connection failure.

Referring now to FIG. 18, an exemplary illustration of the frequencyspectrum used by various communication protocols is shown. While notcomplete with all possible communication protocols nor drawn to scale,FIG. 18 serves to illustrate that communication protocols have definedfrequency distributions and that the methods of embodiments of theinvention for combining an electrical power signal or electricity andelectrical data communication signals on the same communication mediumas a combined electrical signal are methods that are apathetic and evennaïve of the design choice or implementation of the data communicationsignals used between the network element and the subscriber.Communication devices compatible or compliant with communicationprotocols such as but not limited to: ADSL ANSI T1.413, ITU-T G.992.1(G.DMT), ITU-T G.992.2 (G.lite); ADSL2 ITU-T G.992.3/4,; ADLS2+ ITU-TG.992.5; VDSL ITU-T G.993.1; VDSL2 ITU-T G.993.2; DOCSIS 1.0, ITU-TJ.112 (1998); DOCSIS 1.1, ITU-T J.112(2001); DOCSIS 2.0, ITU-T J.122;DOCSIS 3.0, ITU-T J.222, ITU-T J.222.0, ITU-T J.220.1, ITU-T J.222.2,ITU-T J.222.3; HomePNA (HPNA) 2.0, ITU-T G.9951, ITU-T G.9952, ITU-TG.9953; HomePNA (HPNA) 3.0, ITU-T G.9954 (02/05); HomePNA (HPNA) 3.1,ITU-T G.9954 (01/07); HomePlug 1.0, TIA-1113; HomePlug AV, HomePlug AV2,IEEE P1901; Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) 1.0, MoCA 1.1, MoCA2.0, www.mocalliance.org; G.hn, ITU-T G.9960, ITU-T G.9961; and G.hnta,ITU-T G.9970 are congruent with methods and embodiments of the inventionand these specifications are hereby included by reference.

Preferred embodiments of the invention supply electrical power from thesubscriber premise to the network element on the same communicationmedium on a frequency separate (preferably at a lower frequency) fromthe frequency of the network communication signals used between thenetwork element and the subscriber premise. For example, using VDSL2 tocommunicate data between a network element (e.g. ONT/ONU) and asubscriber premise over a twisted wire pair transmission line whileremotely powering the network element from the subscriber premise can beaccomplished by transmitting DC power (i.e., essentially at zerofrequency), AC power at 60 Hz or a DC power signal or AC power signalcentered at some frequency other than that used by VDSL2 since VDSL2occupies frequencies between 25.8 KHz and 30 MHz. In another example,using MoCA to communicate between a network element and a subscriberpremise over a coaxial cable while remotely powering the network elementcan be accomplished by transmitting DC power, AC power at 60 Hz or a DCpower signal or AC power signal centered at some frequency other thanthat used by MoCA since MoCA occupies frequencies between 860 MHz and1.55 GHz. In yet another example, using ITU-T G.hn to communicatebetween a network element and a subscriber premise over either a twistedwire pair or coaxial cable transmission line while remotely powering thenetwork element can be accomplished by transmitting a DC power, AC powerat 60 Hz or a DC power signal or AC power signal centered at somefrequency other than that used by ITU-T G.hn since ITU-T G.hn occupiesfrequencies between 25.8 KHz and 100 MHz-150 MHz range or bands(depending on speed mode of G.hn network).

Alternatively, while not preferred, embodiments of the inventiontransmitting power remotely from the subscriber premise to the networkelement on a frequency occupied, at least in part, by the communicationsignals used to communicate between the network element and thesubscriber premise are envisioned to be possible. The transmittedelectrical power would raise the noise power in the communicationprotocol's frequency spectrum, however as long as the communicationsignals are transmitted at power levels greater than the raised noisepower, communications between the network element and the subscriberpremise are still be possible. For example, modern xDSL (e.g., ads1,ads12, vds1, vds12) modems or G.hn modems measure the noise powerspectrum encountered on their transmission lines dynamically orconstantly. This information is used to determine the power level oftheir communication signal transmissions. Therefore, the rise in noisepower from remotely transmitting electrical power from the subscriberpremise to supply the network element at a frequency that overlaps withthe communication frequencies may be compensated by the xDSL modemsraising their communication signal transmission levels. However, modemswith communication signal power levels beyond conventional signal powerlevels may be needed. Additionally, the subscriber premise xDSL or G.hnmodem should observe the power spectral density or make a spectraldensity estimation of the twisted wire pair transmission line before anytransmission, which can then be used to determine the power levels tosupply power and data signals to the network element.

Although the invention has been described in terms of particularimplementations or embodiments, one of ordinary skill in the art, inlight of this teaching, can generate additional implementations andmodifications without departing from the spirit of or exceeding thescope of the claimed invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood thatthe drawings and descriptions herein are proffered by way of example tofacilitate comprehension of the invention and should not be construed tolimit the scope thereof.

1. A network element of a wide area network, the network element havingat least one optical port for coupling respectively to at least oneoptical fiber for communicating with a service provider and having atleast one electrical port for coupling respectively to at least oneelectrical wire pair or cable for communicating with a subscriber, andthe network element having at least one electrical coupling devicecoupled to an electrical port for separating an electrical power signaland an electrical data communications signal from a combined electricalWAN signal, and the network element having at least one communicationdevice coupled respectively to an electrical coupling device forreceiving and transmitting the electrical data communication signals,and the network element having at least one power converter coupledrespectively to an electrical coupling device for accepting theelectrical power signal and for converting the electrical power signalfor use by the network element, a method for electrically powering thenetwork element comprising the steps of: (a) accepting through at leastone electrical wire pair or cable the combined electrical WAN signalincluding the electrical power signal and the electrical datacommunication signal; (b) decoupling the electrical power signal and theelectrical data communication signal from the combined electrical WANsignal by the electrical coupling device; (c) providing the decoupledelectrical data communication signal to the communication device; (d)providing the decoupled electrical power signal to the power converter;and (e) converting the electrical power signal to electrical power bythe power converter for use by the network element, whereby the networkelement is capable of communicating with the service provider over theoptical fiber and the network element is capable of being electricallypowered over the electrical wire pair or cable by a subscriber and thenetwork element is capable of communicating with the subscriber over thesame electrical wire pair or cable.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherebythe electrical wire pair or cable is selected from the group consistingessentially of: a 22 gauge twisted wire pair; a 24 gauge twisted wirepair; a 26 gauge twisted wire pair; a single wire pair from a category 3cable; a single wire pair from a category 5 cable; a single wire pairfrom a category 5e cable; a single wire pair from a category 6 cable;and a coaxial cable.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereby the electricalwire pair or cable is selected from the group consisting essentially of:a double wire pair from a category 3 cable; a double wire pair from acategory 5 cable; a double wire pair from a category 5e cable; a doublewire pair from a category 6 cable; a category 3 cable; a category 5cable; a category 5e cable; and a category 6 cable.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the electrical coupling device includes one or moremeans selected from the group consisting essentially of: atransformer-based circuit; an optically-based circuit: a capacitivelycoupled circuit; a silicon/integrated circuit-based circuit; a couplingcapacitor; a coupling transformer; a center-tapped transformer; anisolation transformer; a bridge rectifier; a blocking inductor; a commonmode choke; an inductive coupler; a low pass filter; a bandpass filter;and a high-pass filter.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising thestep of: (a0) providing a predetermined resistance load across theelectrical wire pair or cable.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein thecommunication device is selected from the group consisting essentiallyof: a Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL) modem; a Asymmetrical DigitalSubscriber Line (ADSL) modem; a Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line(ADSL2) modem; a Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL2+) modem; aVery-high-bit-rate Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL) modem; aVery-high-bit-rate Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL2) modem; a Power LineCarrier modem; a Power Line Communication modem; a Data Over CableService Specification (DOCSIS) modem; a Data Over Cable ServiceSpecification 2.0 (DOCSIS 2.0) modem; a Data Over Cable ServiceSpecification 3.0 (DOCSIS 3.0) modem; an Ethernet physical layer (PHY)device; an Ethernet media access control (MAC) device; a Multimedia overCoax Alliance (MoCA) capable device; a Multimedia over Coax Alliance 2.0(MoCA 2.0) capable device; and a ITU.T G.hn capable device.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the communication network is selected fromthe group consisting essentially of: a point-to-point active Ethernetcommunication network; a point-to-multipoint communication network; apassive optical network (PON); a fiber to the curb (FTTC) network; afiber to the premise (FTTP) network; a fiber to the home (FTTH) network;a fiber to the node (FTTN) network; and a fiber to the basement (FTTB)network; a hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) network; and wherein the networkelement is selected from the group consisting essentially of: an opticalnode of a HFC network; an optical network unit (ONU); and an opticalnetwork terminal (ONT).
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising thestep of: (f) aggregating the electrical communications signal from oneor more subscriber premises at the network element for communicationwith the service provider over the optical fiber.
 9. The method of claim1, further comprising the step of: (f) powering the network elementprogressively with the addition of each active subscriber coupled to thenetwork element.
 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising the stepof: (f) measuring electrical power consumption of the network element.11. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of: (g)reimbursing the subscriber for the cost of the electricity consumed bythe network element.
 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising thestep of: (f) reducing power consumption of the network element bypowering down non-essential devices or reducing line rates ofcommunications.
 13. A subscriber terminal of a wide area network, thewide area network having a network element with at least one opticalport for coupling respectively to at least one optical fiber forcommunicating with a service provider and at least one electrical portfor coupling respectively to at least one electrical wire pair or cablefor communicating with the subscriber terminal, the subscriber terminalhaving a power source for producing an electrical power signal having acurrent and a voltage, and the subscriber terminal having acommunication device for transmitting and receiving electrical datacommunications signals, and the subscriber terminal having an electricalcoupling device for coupling to the electrical wire pair or cable andfor coupling to the power source and for coupling to the communicationdevice and for combining the electrical power signal with the electricaldata communications signal as a combined electrical WAN signal onto theelectrical wire pair or cable for transmission to the network element, amethod for transmitting electrical power and data communication signalsfrom the subscriber terminal at the subscriber premise to the networkelement of the wide area network comprising the steps of: (a) providingthe electrical power signal having a current and a voltage derived fromsubscriber premise mains power at the subscriber premise; (b) couplingthe electrical power signal with the electrical data communicationssignal from the communication device as the combined electrical WANsignal by the electrical coupling device at the subscriber premise; and(c) transmitting the combined electrical WAN signal to the networkelement through at least one electrical wire pair or cable coupledbetween the subscriber terminal and the network element, whereby thesubscriber terminal is capable of providing electrical power derivedfrom the subscriber premise mains power to the network element over theelectrical wire pair or cable and the subscriber terminal is capable ofelectrical data communications with the network element over the sameelectrical wire pair or cable.
 14. The method of claim 13, whereby theelectrical wire pair or cable is selected from the group consistingessentially of: a 22 gauge twisted wire pair; a 24 gauge twisted wirepair; a 26 gauge twisted wire pair; a single wire pair from a category 3cable; a single wire pair from a category 5 cable; a single wire pairfrom a category 5e cable; a single wire pair from a category 6 cable;and a coaxial cable.
 15. The method of claim 13, whereby the electricalwire pair or cable is selected from the group consisting essentially of:a double wire pair from a category 3 cable; a double wire pair from acategory 5 cable; a double wire pair from a category 5e cable; a doublewire pair from a category 6 cable; a category 3 cable; a category 5cable; a category 5e cable; and a category 6 cable.
 16. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the electrical coupling device includes one or moremeans selected from the group consisting essentially of: atransformer-based circuit; an optically-based circuit: a capacitivelycoupled circuit; a silicon/integrated circuit-based circuit; a couplingcapacitor; a coupling transformer; a center-tapped transformer; anisolation transformer; a bridge rectifier; a blocking inductor; a commonmode choke; an inductive coupler; a low pass filter; a bandpass filter;and a high-pass filter.
 17. The method of claim 13, further comprisingthe step of: (a1) transmitting a low level current sufficient to sense apredetermined resistance load across the electrical wire pair or cable.18. The method of claim 13, wherein the communication device is selectedfrom the group consisting essentially of: a Digital Subscriber Line(xDSL) modem; a Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) modem; aAsymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL2) modem; a AsymmetricalDigital Subscriber Line (ADSL2+) modem; a Very-high-bit-rate DigitalSubscriber Line (VDSL) modem; a Very-high-bit-rate Digital SubscriberLine (VDSL2) modem; a Power Line Carrier modem; a Power LineCommunication modem; a Data Over Cable Service Specification (DOCSIS)modem; a Data Over Cable Service Specification 2.0 (DOCSIS 2.0) modem; aData Over Cable Service Specification 3.0 (DOCSIS 3.0) modem; anEthernet physical layer (PHY) device; an Ethernet media access control(MAC) device; a Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) capable device; aMultimedia over Coax Alliance 2.0 (MoCA 2.0) capable device; and a ITU.TG.hn capable device.
 19. The method of claim 13, wherein thecommunication network is selected from the group consisting essentiallyof: a point-to-point active Ethernet communication network; apoint-to-multipoint communication network; a passive optical network(PON); a fiber to the curb (FTTC) network; a fiber to the premise (FTTP)network; a fiber to the home (FTTH) network; a fiber to the node (FTTN)network; and a fiber to the basement (FTTB) network; a hybridfiber-coaxial (HFC) network; and wherein the network element is selectedfrom the group consisting essentially of: an optical node of an HFCnetwork; an optical network unit (ONU); and an optical network terminal(ONT).
 20. A network element of a wide area network, the network elementhaving at least one optical port for coupling respectively to at leastone optical fiber for communicating with a service provider and havingat least one electrical port for coupling respectively to at least oneelectrical wire pair or cable for communicating with a subscriberterminal at a subscriber premise, and including at the subscriberpremise, the subscriber terminal having a power source for producing anelectrical power signal having a current and a voltage, and thesubscriber terminal having a first communication device for transmittingand receiving electrical data communication signals, and the subscriberterminal having a first electrical coupling device for coupling to theelectrical wire pair or cable and for coupling to the power source andfor coupling to the first communication device and for combining theelectrical power signal of the power source with the electrical datacommunication signals of the first communication device as a combinedelectrical WAN signal onto the electrical wire pair or cable fortransmission to the network element, and including at the networkelement a second electrical coupling device for coupling to theelectrical wire pair or cable and for separating the electrical powersignal and the electrical data communication signals from the combinedelectrical WAN signal, and including at the network element a secondcommunication device coupled to the second electrical coupling deviceand for receiving and transmitting electrical data communicationsignals, and including at the network element a power converter coupledto the second electrical coupling device and for accepting theelectrical power signal and for providing electrical power for use bythe network element, and wherein the network element is capable ofcommunicating with the service provider over an optical fiber, a methodfor electrically powering the network element comprising the steps of:(a) providing at the subscriber terminal the electrical power signalhaving a current and a voltage derived from the subscriber premise mainspower; (b) coupling at the subscriber terminal the electrical powersignal with the electrical data communication signals from the firstcommunication device as the combined electrical WAN signal; (c)transferring the combined electrical WAN signal to the network elementthrough at least one electrical wire pair or cable coupled between thesubscriber terminal and the network element, (d) accepting at thenetwork element the combined electrical WAN signal through at least oneelectrical wire pair or cable coupled between the subscriber terminaland the network element; (e) decoupling at the network element theelectrical power signal and the electrical data communication signalsfrom the combined electrical WAN signal; (f) providing at the networkelement the decoupled electrical data communication signals to thesecond communication device; (g) providing at the network element thedecoupled electrical power signal to the power converter; and (h)converting at the network element by the power converter the electricalpower signal to electrical power for use by the network element, wherebythe network element is capable of communicating with the serviceprovider over the optical fiber and the network element is capable ofbeing electrically powered over the electrical wire pair or cable fromthe subscriber terminal and the network element is capable ofcommunicating with the subscriber terminal over the same electrical wirepair or cable.